MINNEAPOLIS -- Natasha Cloud scored all 19 of her points in the first half, Shakira Austin had a double-double in her first career start and the Washington Mystics beat the Minnesota Lynx 78-66 on Sunday night.
Cloud added six rebounds and six assists. Austin, the No. 3 overall pick out of Ole Miss in last month's draft, finished had 13 points on 5-of-8 shooting and 10 rebounds. Ariel Atkins had 20 points and five assists and Myisha Hines-Allen added 11 points and eight boards. Shatori Walker-Kimbrough scored 10 points.
Jessica Shepard led Minnesota (0-2) with 16 points and 12 rebounds. Sylvia Fowles had 13 points and eight boards. Reserves Yvonne Turner finished with 11 points and Odyssey Sims added 10.
Cloud hit three 3-pointers and had a three-point play to help Washington (2-0) grab a 24-19 lead after one quarter. Cloud scored five points in the first minute of the second period to push the lead to 10 points.
Austin moved into Elena Delle Donne's starting spot. Delle Donne, who had 21 points and nine rebounds in the Mystics' season-opening win over Indiana, sat out the second game. Delle Donne has undergone two surgeries for a herniated disk in the past year and had played just 52 minutes before this season since leading Washington to the WNBA title in 2019.
The Lynx shot just 22.6% (7 of 31) in the first half, including 1 of 7 from 3-point range. The Mystics outscored Minnesota 21-4 in the second quarter to take a 47-23 lead into halftime.
ACES 85, STORM 74
LAS VEGAS -- A'ja Wilson and Dearica Hamby posted double-doubles and Kelsey Plum provided a spark in the fourth quarter to lead Las Vegas past Seattle.
Wilson had 20 points, 15 rebounds and five blocks, while Hamby added 10 points and 19 rebounds. Plum scored 10 of her 18 points in the first four minutes of the final quarter. Her 3-pointer with 8:48 remaining in the game gave Las Vegas (2-0) a 64-61 lead, and the Aces never trailed again.
Breanna Stewart had 21 points and eight rebounds for the Storm (1-1). Jewell Loyd added 19 points and Epiphanny Prince came off the bench to score 11 points in 10 minutes.
SPARKS 87, FEVER 77
INDIANAPOLIS -- Liz Cambage had 22 points on 8-of-11 shooting and 11 rebounds and Brittney Sykes added 17 points and five steals to lead Los Angeles past Indiana.
Nneka Ogwumike had 13 points, eight rebounds and three steals for Los Angeles (2-0), which won its first two games for the first time since 2018. Chennedy Carter had 12 points, five assists and two blocks, and Jordin Canada finished with 10 points and five assists.
Destanni Henderson, the No. 20 overall selection in last month's draft, scored a season-high 19 points for Indiana (0-2). Kelsey Mitchell had 15 points and seven assists, NaLyssa Smith had 13 points and nine rebounds and Alanna Smith finished with 10 points.
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